Hello -- I recently purchased a Reproduco piano/pipe-organ combination
and it has a device mounted above the tracker bar called a "Catch-All
Tracker Cleaner" which I have never seen before.

It consists of a slotted brass tube horizontally mounted in such a way
that it will (presumably) vacuum the roll as it passes over the tube
and pull in any dust or paper bits before the roll moves over the
tracker bar itself.  It is supplied by a 3/8" line that runs up to
a wooden box screwed to the top left of the spoolbox where there is
a filter, which is covered by a very low glass dome that can be removed
for cleaning out the filter by means of a thumbscrew.

Although it looks to be a professionally produced and installed device,
I believe it was an after-market attachment that somebody installed on
their own and not part of the original equipment provided with this
instrument.  This is due to the fact that the clamps that hold this
brass tube to the tracker bar are too large for the spoolbox doors to
properly slide open without dragging.  The backs of the doors are thus
roughly gouged as a result of dragging over these sharp edges.

This leads me to a couple of questions:  (1) Am I correct that this is
an aftermarket accessory?  (2) How common are these and when were they
made?

Although I am loathe to modify anything from its factory originality,
I am considering routing a small groove in the back of the doors to
accommodate leaving this fascinating gadget in there, and provide
adequate clearance to open the doors without dragging.  There is
already damage to the wood, so this added groove would not be done
to an otherwise perfect set of doors.  Would routing this groove be
prudent to prevent further damage, or would it be an objectionable
modification?

How does this device affect the vacuum requirements of the overall
system?  It seems like having every tracker hole open twice -- once
for the cleaner vacuum and again for the actual playing of notes --
would double the load on the vacuum system.  Does having one of these
operating lead to a degradation of the player piano performance?

I hope someone out there has some experience with one of these and
can offer some advice!

Thank you and best regards,
Troy Taylor
Edmonds, Washington